“Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God; But only he who sees, takes off his shoes”.
Elizabeth Scott Browning
On an early morning walk recently I headed towards Whitmoor Common. The sky was clear blue, the light was bright and the dew was glinting in the sunshine.
Noisy young kestrels were side-by-side kik-kik-king reminding me of my children, with their sound carrying in the still morning air. I walked further and sat on a bench where I became aware of a shape watching me in the distance. A young deer scrutinised me from afar.
The urge to walk called to me, the bench had lost its charm. A tree pipit sang as I searched for it in a low silver birch, taking-off before I spotted it. This small bird ascended rapidly calling as it went – reaching its peak then parachuted down into the heather hidden from view.
Moving further along the path I noticed heathers, gorses, and other shrubs on either side covered and interwoven with webs. These webs were glinting in the light, covered in very fine dew as if there was a frost. The sight amazed me and I spent some time pondering upon them.
There were single threads of web linking each plant, as if walkways for the spiders to connect the space between bushes – a substantial trapeze act for such small creatures! Some of the more stereotypical webs were evident with their standard shape and outline. A few tunnel webs were dotted around as well. The ones that captured and intrigued me most were the sheet like webs. I wondered how these could have been made. These miniature fragile uneven latticed sheets, from a distance, appeared to be void of any gaps but on closer inspection were finely netted. They were everywhere. What kind of spider made them? Why had I not noticed them before? Why did this capture my attention today?
Progressing onward I came to a small pond by one of the main paths. The pond teemed with backswimmers, numerous miniscule movements occurred all over the water surface. A few newts came up; I didn’t see the Raft spider which I’d hoped for, hearing that it could be seen there. In scanning for the spider through binoculars I literally gasped at a clear spherical droplet of water poised on the tip of a leaf! I wondered when it would move – a real wow moment! Walking on I drank in the bird song and atmosphere of quiet.
My next surprise was an escaped Belted Galloway steer on the path coming towards me. Being a lightweight of slightly nervous disposition I didn’t tempt fate in a confrontation and so I bypassed the beast through the undergrowth and alerted the ranger.
A Buzzard, low in a tree next to Salt Box road was startled by my presence and disappeared deeper into the wood.
Almost home a movement caught my eye and I stopped looked down and noticed a small brown mottled bird with gingery tinges – a young robin unmoved by me! I’d nearly trodden on her!
Thinking on all this as I wended my way home put me in mind of aspects of my life. Sometimes the noise of children bears down on me but it passes. Sometimes I miss what’s always there or who is there, that is the presence of His Spirit. When I step aside and give Him time I see again. They say that the devil is in the detail I am not so sure we can give such credit to him!
In looking for things I don’t see them but something else more magical happens. I can, even though the event is passed enjoy looking back and consider what God is saying.
Creation or nature has sometimes been called the second book of God. It has something to say to all of us, are we open to the leading of His Spirit through our senses to what He wants to say to us or do with us through it? Can we be at one with nature and The Holy Spirit? Do we look at nature from afar for whatever reason, with longing, indifference or disdain? That’s something to consider.